"The word tragedy gets used too often in sport, but this freak accident is a real life tragedy."

"We appreciate all the support we have received from family, friends, players, Cricket Australia and the general public.

"Cricket was Phillip's life and we as a family shared that love of the game with him. We would like to thank all the medical and nursing staff at St Vincent's Hospital and Cricket New South Wales medical staff for their great efforts with Phillip. We love you."

A clearly emotional Clarke then stood up and left the room.

Hughes, batting for South Australia, collapsed face first on the ground after being hit by a bouncer from 22-year-old Abbott during a Sheffield Shield game against New South Wales.

Hughes had been wearing a helmet but the ball struck him at the top of the neck, causing the injury.

He had CPR and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation at the ground before being taken to St Vincent's Hospital, where he had a 90-minute operation to relieve pressure on his brain.

Abbott and members of the Australian national team, including Clarke, visited Hughes in hospital.Family leaves: Hughes' distraught father Greg (centre), mother Virginia (second on the right) and other relatives leave St Vincent's Hospital

Ronaldo is the “almost perfect” player, according to Portugal team-mate Ricardo Carvalho.

Marcelino acknowledged that Messi and Ronaldo were the two best players on the planet, but insisted Madrid’s frontman is better because of his aerial prowess and his belief Ronaldo is stronger with both feet than his Argentine rival.

Sushant Singh Rajput and Alia Bhatt will be seen together in none other than Finding Fanny director, Homi Adajania’s next. That’s not all. The film is said to be an epic love story in Hindi. This will be the first time that Alia will be paired opposite Sushant and this makes for an interesting watch!

Wednesday, 26 November 2014

Bollywood's beloved on-screen and off-screen couple Genelia D'Souza and Riteish Deshmukh were Tuesday blessed with a son, their first child.

The excited father took to Twitter to share the good news and posted: "It's a BBBOOOOYYYYYY!!!!!!!!"

The couple, who had been dating since 2003, tied the knot in 2012. Having starred together in movies like "Tujhe Meri Kasam" and "Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya", they are often called the 'cutest couple of tinsel town'

She is looked upon as a diva, has easily grabbed several mainstream Bollywood films, is invited to schools, family celebrations, puja pandals and for giving away awards at functions and is not at all judged on the parameters of her background as a porn star in a conservative country like India.

Sunny Leone has earned a position in Indian society which many Bollywood starlets are still striving to achieve. The reasons are many and she has really worked hard for it. Here are the ten reasons why we all love Sunny Leone so much.

Tuesday, 25 November 2014

Voters in Jammu and Kashmir defied a boycott call and inclement weather as half of the total electorate in 15 Assembly constituencies cast their franchise to register 70 per cent turnout in the first phase of the five-phase elections on Tuesday.

Enthusiastic voters queued up at most polling stations in the Valley and the Jammu region. Even a separatist boycott call in the Valley evoked no response as men and women came out in large numbers to vote. Polling was low key initially because of the winter cold in the morning, especially in the Ladakh region where temperatures were much below the freezing point.

As the day progressed, voting picked up in the Ladakh region. Voters lined up at polling booths in Gurez, Kangan, Ganderbal, and Bandipora constituencies. In the Jammu region, Doda, Kishtwar, Inderwal, Bhaderwah, Banihal and Ramban also saw voters turn up at booths.

The voters said they were voting for change in the Valley, while those in the Jammu region said they were voting for change and development. "We have decided to participate in the elections to vote for change," said Nisar, 24, who was voting for the first time.

The young and first-time voters were particularly enthusiastic about casting their vote. "Yes, I have voted and I have no fear in admitting this. It is time all youth came out to bring change which is only possible through the power of ballot," said Irshad, 25, at Inderkote polling station in Sonawari constituency.

The Election Commission had deputed 225 micro observers, besides webcasting voting at nearly 160 polling stations. No major untoward incident was reported from anywhere. "Polling was peaceful at all the 1787 polling stations spread over seven districts," an official said.

Over a million voters will decide the political fate of 123 candidates in the fray. Polling started at 8 am and ended at 4 pm. The counting of votes will take place on December 23 after the last phase of the five-phase elections ends on December 20.

Talk about exciting news! KJo has managed a casting coup of sorts for his next directorial venture. Want to know more on this? We have all the details!

Karan Johar, who hasn’t directed any film in 2014 is all set to return to direction next year. And guess what? He has cast Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and wait for it…Aishwarya Rai Bachchan for his directorial venture. Well, that’s what the reports suggest.

While we will get to see Ranbir and Anushka romancing each other in Bombay Velvet, which also has KJo playing the villain, but Ranbir and the Bachchan bahu coming together is certainly one heck of a deal.

Though the filmmaker is tight lipped about the project, those in the know say that theAsh-RK casting is sure to grab eyeballs. “Karan is returning to direction after a gap, and he wants it to be extraordinary. He will make sure that this next film catches everyone’s attention,”

We knew love was in the air for Janel and Val! On the Nov. 24 episode of ‘DWTS’ our hearts literally melted when Janel said the L-word to Val after their incredible freestyle, which they ended with a big kiss!

Janel, 26, and Val, 28, danced beautifully to an acoustic rendition of “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles),” and took everyone’s breath away during the freestyle. At the end of their chilling performance, they sealed it with a very passionate kiss, which can be seen here!

Monday, 24 November 2014

Jacqueline Fernandez has been part of a few films that have been hits, but she now feels the need to prove her acting chops. The actor says that she is working hard to showcase her talent, and isn’t satisfied being known as just a pretty face.

“Everyone who works hard — in any profession — wants to be known for their work. I, too, want the audience and the industry to praise me for my acting skills, and not just for starring in hit films. Looking glamorous and being a good dancer may be a part and parcel of my work, but I’m consciously trying to work harder and establish myself as a talented actor. Just being a glam doll won’t satisfy me, or any other actor,” she says.

Jacqueline says that she has a long way to go and plenty to learn. “Acting is a difficult art, and it takes years of training and experience to do justice to it,” feels the actor, who has become conscious about every scene she enacts. She explains, “When I judge my performance, I try to gauge what I should or shouldn’t have done. Between shots, I think about my expressions, dialogue delivery and body language. If you are appreciated for that, it’s an accomplishment.”

After missing the recent Lok Sabha poll, team India skipper and Election Commission brand ambassador Mahendra Singh Dhoni may skip voting this election too, as he is scheduled to leave for Australia on a two-month tour late November.

Dhoni's constituency Hatia in Ranchi goes to polls on December 9, the day when a test match is scheduled to be played.

P.K. Jajoria, the chief electoral officer, said, "His presence is immensely needed to increase the voter's turn out percentage as Jharkhand registered a mere 55 per cent and a marginally better 68 per cent turnout in the 2009 Assembly election and the recent LS polls. But since he would be busy with his matches we may miss his services as EC brand ambassador."

"There is no provision for online voting in India. Further, under the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, a week's notice should be given for casting a postal ballot and the stipulation is that voter is in India, not abroad," Jajoria said while explaining skipping of voting by the stars.

The skipper's hometown Ranchi is furious. "If he himself skips voting how would he be able to convince others to vote for which he has been appointed as ECI's Brand ambassador," said Avhishek Kumar, a youth.

Echoing similar views, Amber Sameer, a retired government official, said, "Being an international face, Dhoni must not forget his duty. He must arrange time and go vote."

"He should have voted the last time and he must vote this time as it is fundamental for him," said Sampreet Kaur, a housewife.

Thursday, 20 November 2014

The Twilight Saga was one of Hollywood's biggest box office hits of all time and became an international phenomenon, so it's no surprise to hear that two years after the last film was releasedthe series is making a comeback.Stephenie Meyer, the author of the series, and Lions Gate, the production company behind the big screen adaptation, have announced that they will be searching for five female aspiring directors to make short films based on the characters.

The franchise made star names ofKristen Stewart and British actorRobert Pattinson, and Kristen will return to the panel of women who will chose the five winners.

Joining Kristen will be author Stephenie, the director of the first film Catherine Hardwicke, and actresses Kate Winslet, Octavia Spencer, Julie Bowen, and director of Frozen, Jennifer Lee.

In a statement Stephenie said: "The female voice is something that has become more and more important to me as I've worked in the film industry. "The short film series, called The Storytellers—New Creative Voices of The Twilight Saga also has the backing of Women in Film, an organization devoted in part to ending a shortage of female directors."

The supernatural series followed Bella Swan, a human teenage girl who fell in love with a vampire, Edward Cullen, and soon found herself caught between vampires, werewolves, and the bigger forces at hand.

The winning videos will be shown exclusively on Facebook in 2015, and Michael Burns, vice chairman of Lions Gate added to the New York Times: "We think Facebook is a great way for us to introduce the world of Twilight to a whole new audience while re-energizing existing fans.

This is the just the beginning—a template, if you will," Burns added. "You can probably guess what might be coming next."

Wednesday, 19 November 2014

Since the start of her career, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has been associated with multiple foundations that support a number of causes. And as she celebrates the 20th anniversary of being crowned Miss World(November 19), the actor has decided to celebrate the occasion in a unique manner. A friend of Aishwarya’s tells us that she has been sponsoring surgeries of 100 children with clefts since a couple of months. “She has been involved in this cause since October. The kids being treated are in the age group of one to 14 years,” the friend reveals.

We’re also told that the actor will be visiting a hospital in the city suburbs today to meet a few children. “Aishwarya will meet some slightly older kids, who are done with their treatment, and will interact with them. She felt that meeting toddlers would be difficult, as they are still recovering and are too young to understand much,” her friend adds.

When contacted, the actor’s spokesperson confirmed the news, saying, “Aishwarya is sponsoring the surgeries of 100 children with clefts to mark the 20th anniversary of her winning the Miss World pageant. She will also be meeting around 50-60 children, and will celebrate the day with them.”

They may have parted ways, but former couple Katrina Kaif and Salman Khan continue to remain close even now. The actress was spotted at Khan's sister Arpita's wedding to Aayush Sharma in Hyderabad on Tuesday night. Director Kabir Khan, who currently working with Khan in 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' shared a picture of a happy group at the wedding which included Katrina Kaif, Karan Johar, Kabir Khan and his wife, Mini Mathur with other friends. We hear that Katrina sent her personal make up artist to Arpita's rescue at the last moment when the bride's make up artist backed out. Katrina is known to be close to Salman Khan's family and is part of almost all the celebrations in their household. Katrina's current boyfriend Ranbir Kapoor was not present at the wedding

Bollywood screen icon Amitabh Bachchan, who is also the United Nations ambassador for the Girl Child, is now "happy" to be a part of a unique cyber venture that aims to create a holistic online environment for children.

"Should kids or should kids not? Isn't there a bigger responsibility of creating a holistic online environment? I'm happy to be a part of a unique initiative for kids," Big B posted on social networking site Facebook Tuesday referring to worldoo.com.

The internet project has roped in the star to help create a responsible internet for children as they take their first step online.

The 72-year-old actor is in the city to shoot for Shoojit Sircar's "Piku".With the filming wrapped up Tuesday, Sircar expressed his gratitude to the residents of Kolkata, the West Bengal government and the Kolkata Police."Grateful to the CM of West Bengal, Mamata di, for her support and warmth this wld not have been possible without her blessings."Grateful to the Kolkata police for their support and administration in enabling a successful shoot and to the people of Kolkata, for their love, for making us feel at home...from PIKU team...Dhonobaad!!, Sircar tweeted Tuesday.

Tuesday, 18 November 2014

Lewis Hamilton, who is chasing his second Formula One World Championship, needs at least a second-place finish to clinch this season's title. Hamilton currently has 334 points, 17 more than his Mercedes teammate and title rival Nico Rosberg.

With double the points (usually a winner gets 25 points for a victory) up for grabs in the final race of the season at Abu Dhabi this weekend, Hamilton would love to grab 50 points and lift the coveted trophy.

While it is certain that the title will be decided between the Mercedes duo, Hamilton would expect another fierce challenge from his teammate when the pair resumes hostilities at the Yas Marina circuit on super Sunday in Formula One.

Hamilton, on his debut season in 2007, lost the championship by just one point to Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari, while the next season the Briton edged Ferari's Felipe Massa to clinch his first title. Once again it's going down-to-the-wire before the world champion is decided.

This season too had controversy, drama and on-track excitement with Mercedes taking the honours 15 times out of 18 races so far. It is also tough to believe that four-time defending champion Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull failed to register even a single victory. The other three wins were registered by Vettel's teammate Daniel Ricciardo.

Monday, 17 November 2014

Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand salvaged a draw after suffering for a long time in the seventh game of the world chess championship against Magnus Carlsen.

Trying to recuperate from a double blunder in the previous sixth game of the 12-game match, Anand did not show any signs of fatigue and matched Carlsen move for move in what was considered a grudge game.

The Indian, who was facing a double white from Carlsen according to the rules laid in, was at his best in defense even though the game was fought in the most recent theoretical battle.

For the records, it was as theoretical as it could get in a world championship match. Carlsen took the naton and went for the extensively analysed Berlin defense with his white pieces which was an indication earlier enough that the Norwegian word champion has worked out a plan to tackle Vishy’s deep preparation in the opening.

As it happened, Dutch Grandmaster Anish Giri could not stop himself from tweeting that ‘when it came to Berlin, Carlsen knew who to follow’. The Dutch GM was obviously referring to his game against Teinmour Radjabov of Azerbaijan just a couple of weeks back and after Carlsen followed him to the hilt there was no doubt that Giri was making sense.

Anand in fact checked himself not to follow that game and it was clear that the Indian ace had analysed the details himself not to fall in a soup. Instead what followed what a deeply analysed sequence of moves, wherein Anand had worked out his way to equality.

“These are the kind of position when you have to be lucky, but if you are playing in a world championship match you better be correct,” said Grandmaster Abhijeet Gupta, who has been leenly following the match.

As it turned out, the game was in Anand’s grip only for a short while as Carlsen took control soon after. The Indian was subjected to some technical questions on the game once the second time control was over.

It was a piece sacrifice by Anand that opened the debate, Indian ace was thereon trying to figure out a way to defend a piece down endgame which was theoretically drawn.

As it happened, Carlsen went to haunt Anand for a long time with his extra piece but the result of the game was never in doubt. A draw it was and a draw it finally became after 122 move long game.

While Anand had to undergo a long routine of finding the saviours, its clear that only the Indian ended up a winner after such a long ordeal.

Few months ago, prior to the release of the blockbuster Happy New Year, we had reported that Shah Rukh Khan will be a hosting a show which is produced by the 'Got Talent' producer Simon Cowell.

Though speculations then claimed that it was a part of the promotions for Happy New Year, producer Morani always denied it and maintained that it was individual event. Now, it has finally been revealed that Shah Rukh Khan's Don costar, Priyanka Chopra too will be a part of this. The actress will be hosting the show along with the superstar and the two will add a lot of peppy and witty elements to it. It is also being said that they will perform on stage but that decision is yet to be taken.

The show in question is an extension of 'Got Talent' and 'India's Got Talent' titled 'Got Talent World Stage' where 10 performers/ performing groups will be showing their talent on stage live. The said show will be held in Mumbai on December 6. The other details of the same are still being kept under wraps. Apart from them, a few Bollywood celebrities like Jacqueline Fernandez and Varun Dhawan will be performing and judges of India's Got Talent Malaika Arora Khan, Kirron Kher and Karan Johar will also grace the event.

Bollywood young couple Anushka Sharma and Ranveer Singh called off their relationship two years back. The duo fell in love on the sets of ‘Band Baaja Baarat’. The reason behind the break-up is yet uncertain.

Real Madrid star is now the top goalscorer in European Championship history after scoring a late winner in Portugal’s 1-0 win over Armenia.

He became the highest goal scorer in European Championship history following his 71st minute strike against Armenia on Friday.He has 23 goals in European qualification and finals combined. It was his 25th goal of the season for club and country, and settled a dour affair which offered little in the way of attacking quality.

the Portugal captain overtakes Denmark’s Jon Dahl Tomasson, who retired from international duty in 2010.

Jacqueline Fernandez has been receiving numerous requests from fans asking her to write a book on health and fitness revealing her trade secrets for the perfect body.

Given the overwhelming number of requests that have been pouring in, the actress is seriously contemplating penning a tell-it-all book about everything you need to know about fitness and wellness in the near future.

Says Jacqueline, "I have been requested by my fans to write a book on beauty and fitness on social media platforms but I am concentrating on my movies now and feel a book can come later in life.”

Friday, 14 November 2014

Johnny Depp was in rare form at the Hollywood Film Awards Nov. 14. Stumbling and slurring through his presentation, many fans wondered if the star was intoxicated — to put it lightly.

ThePirates Of The Caribbeanstar made quite an impression while presenting the award for Hollywood Documentary at the 2014 Hollywood Film Awards.Johnny Depp, 51, slurred his words, cursed multiple times and made jaws drop with his actions in front of the audience. Fans watching the show immediately sounded off on Johnny’s bizarre appearance at the HFAs.

Rohit Sharma created history, becoming the first man ever to smash two double centuries in ODIs. Rohit got his second double ton vs Sri Lanka in Eden Gardens on Thursday. His first (209) came against Australia in Bangalore on November 3, 2013. Rohit also surpassed Virender Sehwag's 219 to become the highest-scorer in ODIs. Rohit was dismissed off the final delivery for 264, as India finished on 404/5 and eventually won the match by 153 runs. Rohit's scintillating essay included 33 fours and 9 sixes. (Scorecard | Highlights | Full match report)

Rohit survived an early dropped chance when he was on 4 and capitalised well to make his way into the record books. He reached the 200-run mark off 151 balls. "I was not tired at all. Coming after a two-month break, I was determined. Once I crossed 50, I had to get a century," Rohit said in a chat. (300 can wait, I am happy with record 264: Rohit | Rohit's knock in pics)

Rohit, playing in his first ODI after injuring his hand in India's tour of England, took time to get his eye in after stand-in skipper Kohli won his first toss of the series and elected to bat. However, following the dismissals of Ajinkya Rahane and Ambati Rayudu, Rohit and Kohli came together to plot India's fightback. (Sachin Tendulkar applauds Rohit Sharma's innings)

There was a seamless transition in Rohit's approach as the presence of Kohli instilled confidence in the Mumbaikar. He reached his 24th half-century off 71 balls and began to shift gears from thereon. Sri Lanka's good start was torn to shreds when Rohit raced away to a run-a-ball century and then belted their bowlers all around the iconic Eden Gardens to reach his 200 in the 46th over. Rohit, who finished on 264 off 173 balls, was at his ruthless best as the last 200 runs of his knock came from just 94 balls. (Fuming Angelo Matthews tears into Sri Lankan team)

Thursday, 13 November 2014

Priyanka Chopra has got a taste of her own medicine. Last year the shooting of Apoorva Lakhia'sZanjeer got postponed a couple of times because of her commitments in LA.

Now, because of her Bajirao Mastani co-star Ranveer Singh's commitments, Priyanka had to take off for LA when she suddenly found herself at a loose end.

Says a source, "When Ranveer took time off from the shooting of Bajirao Mastani to promote Kill DilPriyanka was directly affected. Rather than wait for Ranveer she flew to LA."

The halted schedule of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Bajirao Mastani will now resume from November 15, a day after Ranveer Singh's upcoming film Kill Dil releases.

Apparently Ranveer would not be doing any post-release publicity.

Says a source, "Sanjay Bhansali, who is cooling his heels while Ranveer has gone to town with the Kill Dil promotion, was in the middle of a crucial scene when Ranveer decided to take off. Now picking up the threads of that scene again won't be easy."

Says a source, "While Deepika Padukone was meant to join the Bajirao Mastani team from March Priyanka Chopra had to postpone her shooting for Bajirao Mastani. She has taken off for LA to look into her music commitments."

India will be co-publishing Sachin Tendulkar's autobiography Playing It My Way in Indian language editions and has been flooded with interest from several publishers. (Top 10 quotes from Playing it my way)

Poulomi Chatterjee, Publisher, Hachette India, said, "We have had an overwhelming response to the launch of this bestseller and are in talks with several Indian language publishers. We look forward to co-publishing this bestseller in Marathi, Hindi, Gujarati, Malayalam, Assamese, Telugu and Bengali. (Sachin gifts first copy to mother Rajini)

The book has topped 200,000 copies in orders, already pulling ahead of both pre-order and lifetime sales of the top hardbacks Dan Brown's Inferno, Walter Issacson's Steve Jobs and JK Rowling's Casual Vacancy

They won't own up to the truth for whatever it is worth, and the world won't let them be on their own. The more that (rumoured) lovebirds Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif shy away from revealing the 'real' status of their love story, the more the world seems obsessed with it.

Were it not for her Twilight fame Kritsen Stewart would still be celebrated as an indie film darling following hits like Still Alice. At the AFI Fest Indie Contenders Panel, Stewart said that both indies and tentpoles have their virtues. "You're always going to want a huge launching pad for what you poured your life's energy and soul and heart into, but there is also something that feels cool about the outsider factor of, not everybody loves what we're doing but the few that do are brothers, do you know what I mean? It feels great to go to Sundance. It's fun. That's why I make movies."'

Stewart, described by Feinberg as "the Sundance queen" on the basis of her many films that have debuted there, rejected George Clooney's idea of the "one for them, one for me" approach — alternating indies and studio films. "I'm genuinely very much blown with the wind, I follow the gut. It's not a tactical approach. I can greenlight a movie now that I've done five Twilight movies, but I just think it's doing things for the right reason. There's no way to quantify it. Even if something doesn't completely equal success, if you don't go, this script and director and cast and budget [spell success], I'm fully willing to hop on something if I'm interested in one person who's involved in it, or one line that my character says that I've always been dying to say -- it's like, I will make a bad movie. Because it's like, I'm like, whatever -- I didn't make it myself!"